Affordable Housing Victory in Huntington Beach

The Los Angeles County Superior Court struck down the City of Huntington Beach’s efforts to block affordable housing. An amendment to the Beach-Edinger Corridor Specific Plan (BECSP), adopted on May 4, 2015, would have blocked the development of affordable housing at the City’s primary location for residential development, the Beach-Edinger Corridor.

“This ruling means that affordable housing is once again possible in Huntington Beach.”
– Cesar Covarrubias, Executive Director of the Kennedy Commission.

Two formerly homeless veterans and the Kennedy Commission (a non-profit dedicated to advocating for affordable housing in Orange County), represented by the Public Interest Law project, along with co-counsel Public Law Center and Jones Day, filed a petition challenging the amendment on July 31, 2015. On November 12, 2015, the Court granted petitioners’ request and declared the amendment void. The Court Ruling is available here.

“This ruling means that affordable housing is once again possible in Huntington Beach,” said Cesar Covarrubias, Executive Director of the Kennedy Commission. “Huntington Beach faces a worsening housing crisis, as one-third to one-half of all residents spend an unaffordable share of their income on housing costs. We look forward to working with developers and the City to achieve affordable housing within Huntington Beach.”